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iPhone: Anticipation is Making Me Wait

Some of you may remember a certain Heinz TV commercial from the 1970s. You know, the one that showed people eyeballing the neck of a glass ketchup bottle, eagerly awaiting the arrival of a delicious dollop of tomato topping while Carly Simon’s hit song “Anticipation” played in the background. With the clever exploitation of an excruciatingly slow-pouring, glass ketchup bottle, Heinz turned a major irritation – a design flaw really – into a clever marketing hook. Something so good that it’s worth waiting for.

Fast forward three decades. Apple Computer has spent the better part of 7 years grilling a fat, juicy, electronic cheeseburger and boy do we have an appetite.

ketchup.gif

Some of you may remember a certain Heinz TV commercial from the 1970s. You know, the one that showed people eyeballing the neck of a glass ketchup bottle, eagerly awaiting the arrival of a delicious dollop of tomato topping while Carly Simon’s hit song “Anticipation” played in the background. With the clever exploitation of an excruciatingly slow-pouring, glass ketchup bottle, Heinz turned a major irritation – a design flaw really – into a clever marketing hook. Something so good that it’s worth waiting for.
Fast forward three decades. Apple Computer has spent the better part of 7 years grilling a fat, juicy, electronic cheeseburger and boy do we have an appetite. The recipe for this futuristic comestible has been painstakingly crafted – a pound of OS X, mix in some iLife and a healthy dash of iPod for extra flavor. Combine ingredients and grill to perfection. And now for the slow-moving topper.
The iPhone is the mother of all Mac condiments. Everyone will want one and millions of us will help propel Apple Inc. to the next level of the stratosphere by buying one on the very day that they’re available. Nothing will ever be the same, even for people who will never own an iPhone. It will change the way other manufacturers do what they do. As the Macintosh did some twenty-two years earlier, the iPhone will change everything.
Read more after the jump…

ketchup.gif

Some of you may remember a certain Heinz TV commercial from the 1970s. You know, the one that showed people eyeballing the neck of a glass ketchup bottle, eagerly awaiting the arrival of a delicious dollop of tomato topping while Carly Simon’s hit song “Anticipation” played in the background. With the clever exploitation of an excruciatingly slow-pouring, glass ketchup bottle, Heinz turned a major irritation – a design flaw really – into a clever marketing hook. Something so good that it’s worth waiting for.
Fast forward three decades. Apple Computer has spent the better part of 7 years grilling a fat, juicy, electronic cheeseburger and boy do we have an appetite. The recipe for this futuristic comestible has been painstakingly crafted – a pound of OS X, mix in some iLife and a healthy dash of iPod for extra flavor. Combine ingredients and grill to perfection. And now for the slow-moving topper.
The iPhone is the mother of all Mac condiments. Everyone will want one and millions of us will help propel Apple Inc. to the next level of the stratosphere by buying one on the very day that they’re available. Nothing will ever be the same, even for people who will never own an iPhone. It will change the way other manufacturers do what they do. As the Macintosh did some twenty-two years earlier, the iPhone will change everything.
As we stare into the neck of that metaphoric glass ketchup bottle, ardently anticipating iPhone’s summer splashdown, we have time to reflect, think about what could be coming and prepare our mobile tech lives for another dramatic change. As hard as it is to wait for something this good, we’re probably fortunate for a little lead time.
Distant ship date bonus #1 – There’s lots of time for manufacturers to build cases and accessories for iPhone. One of my major beefs with buying new gear immediately following a keynote is that there’s no protection, no cases, no socks, no nothing. If there were nano cases available on the day the nano shipped I wouldn’t have a scratched nano.
Distant ship date bonus #2 – There’s lots of time for developers to build iPhone enhancements. The possibilities here are endless. Wouldn’t it be great to have GPS, voice recording and office applications on the day the iPhone goes on sale? They may not be ready in June but they’re all coming, believe me.
Distant ship date bonus #3 – Those of us who are not Cingular customers have time to plan an exit strategy for our current mobile contracts. I plan to port my number to Cingular in May so that when I get the iPhone I’ll be able to pop in my SIM card and have service immediately. I’m lucky to have completed my contractual obligation to T-Mobile but some of us may have to eat an early cancellation fee in exchange for freedom. Pioneers take the arrows, right?
Distant ship date bonus #4 – Apple has time to ramp up production. Once they begin shipping there should be plenty of iPhones to go around. As usual, the Apple stores will have them first and the VARs will probably get them some time later.
The demand for this product will probably be as high or higher than anything that Apple has ever offered. There’s just enough time for all of us to get our ducks in a row – you, me, developers, accessory makers, Cingular and Apple. The burger has been grilled and it looks terrific. We’re all ready to eat. In this modern world of the instant gratification of squeezable ketchup, the wait for iPhone will be agonizing. Anticipation indeed.